The main engine of a coiled tubing unit is the injector head. This component contains the mechanism to push and pull the coiled tubing in and out of the hole. An injector head has a curved guide beam on top called a “gooseneck” which threads the coiled tubing into the injector head. Below the injector head is the stripper, which contains rubber pack-off elements providing a seal around the tubing to isolate the well's pressure. Below the stripper is a blowout preventer, which provides the ability to cut the coiled tubing and seal the well bore and hold the seal around the tubing.
In one aspect, embodiments disclosed here relate to a knee-joint mechanism for a folding gooseneck used in a coiled tubing unit, the gooseneck including a main structure having a distal end pivotally attached thereto, the knee-joint mechanism including an articulated member attached between the main structure and the pivotally attached distal end of the gooseneck, the articulated member having a joint, and a cylinder attached between the main structure and the articulated member, wherein an arm of the cylinder is extended to push the joint of the articulated member to an over-center position, thereby locking the articulated member.
In another aspect, embodiments disclosed herein relate to methods of manipulating a pivoting distal end of a gooseneck, the distal end pivotally connected at one end to a main structure of the gooseneck, methods including attaching an articulated member having a joint between the pivoting distal end and the main structure, attaching a cylinder between the main structure and the articulated member, and extending an arm of the cylinder, thereby pushing the joint of the articulated member to an over-center position, thereby locking the articulated member.
In yet other aspects, embodiments disclosed herein relate to a coiled tubing unit including an injector head, a gooseneck mounted on top of the injector head, the gooseneck comprising a distal pivoting end attached to a main structure, and a knee-joint mechanism for manipulating the distal pivoting end of the gooseneck, the knee-joint mechanism including an articulated member attached between the distal end and the main structure, the articulated member having a joint and a cylinder attached between the main structure and the articulated member, wherein an arm of the cylinder is extended to push the joint of the articulated member to an over-center position, thereby locking the articulated member.